Garbage Truck Collides With 4 Cars, Injuring 5

Prairie Grove — A garbage truck collided with four automobiles early Monday near the intersection of Illinois Highway 176 and Buhl Road, sending all five motorists to area hospitals.

Authorities said slippery road conditions appeared to cause the driver of the garbage truck to lose control while it headed east on Highway 176 at about 6:30 a.m. Authorities discounted the involvement of drugs in the crash.

Lt. Gary Mlekush of the Nunda Rural Fire Protection District said none of the motorists appeared to have life threatening injuries, although emergency crews had to cut off a car roof to remove one woman.

Four of the injured motorists were taken to Northern Illinois Medical Center in McHenry while one was taken to EHS Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington. Prairie Grove Police declined to release the names of those injured, pending conclusion of an investigation later this week.